Commander

The Commander, produced by the Sullivan-Nolan Advertising Company in June 1942 as a conversion of Bally's 'Fleet,' is an early entry into the electro-mechanical (EM) era of pinball machines. Its existence is attributed to wartime conversions of existing machinery, reflecting the creative solutions manufacturers employed to keep operators supplied with games amid material shortages.

Gameplay on the Commander featured standard EM components of the flipperless era -- bumpers, targets, and relays -- with the ball's path and the player's nudging skill determining scoring, since flippers had not yet been invented. The machine's theme remains unspecified in surviving records, adding to its mystique. Its utilitarian appearance likely mirrored the practicality of wartime designs.

The Commander's scarcity and limited documentation make it an intriguing subject for collectors and historians alike. Its status as an example from the WWII conversion era contributes to its significance as a precursor to the more sophisticated flipper-equipped pinball machines that followed after 1947.